Thanks Matt Kuchar.
Thanks, Kooch, for hanging in there down in Rio.
Thanks for picking up the slack.
Thanks for saving face for American golf.
Thanks for that awesome Sunday 63.
Thanks for the Bronze Medal.
It was better than nothing, better than what the rest of your teammates gave us last week.
Yes, we owe a debt of gratitude to Kooch. We owe him because he wasn’t supposed to be the star of this Team USA. He was an after-thought. Jordan Spieth passed, so did Dustin Johnson. Hey Kooch, you’re in!
Really? Kooch didn’t even know what the format was as he headed to Rio, the fourth man on Team USA, the guy who was there, barely. Proudly ranked 20th in the world but he wasn’t getting any of the pre-tournament hype. That was reserved for Bubba Watson, his sidekick Rickie Fowler and lone-wolf Patrick Reed.
Bubba kept blubbering how proud he was to be there, saying all the right, patriotic things. Rickie Fowler was there for the fun. Rumor is he was voted “Mr. Congeniality” by more than a dozen women’s beach volleyball players from seven different countries.
Bubba and Rickie made more than their share of the rounds. Too bad there was no Gold and Silver medal for spectating and schmoozing. They both would have made it to the podium.
Then came this true confession from Bubba:
“When I’m at The Masters, I’m grinding. I want to practice. I want to go back and get as much rest as I can, because of the grueling test. Now should I be that way here (in Rio)? Some people will say “yes” but I want to enjoy it. I want to go see the other sports. I want to cheer on the other athletes. These are athletes that have dedicated their lives for this one event.”
Right you are, Bubba. Why should you grind? Leave that to someone else.
Bubba’s rounds of 73-67-67-70 left him tied for eighth with Sergio Garcia and Emiliano Grillo.
Patrick Reed finally got down to business on Sunday. Took him three days and after shooting 72-69-73, he finally got it going with a final round 64 that got him to six-under, tied for 11th.
Rickie had only one sub-70 round, a 64 on Saturday, his others were 75-71 and a 74 on Sunday.
Tied for 37th but Rickie’s still No. 1 in the hearts of the USA women’s swimming team.
But then there was Kooch.
Thank goodness one American got it going and decided to grind it out. All his rounds were under par and his Sunday 63 gives him a share of the Olympic scoring record with Aussie Marcus Fraser.
What is important to remember is that the record was there for the taking. Kuchar three-putted the par four 16th for par after driving the green then failed to birdie the very gettable par five 18th. Still, 63 is 63 and he was the runaway Bronze winner. Kooch was the only Team USA player to shoot under par every day (69-70-69-63).
“I can’t explain this feeling of pride — it’s just busting out of my chest,” Kooch said after knowing he clinched the Bronze. He stopped short of declaring it better than a PGA Tour win. “There’s nothing like winning a PGA Tour event. You beat the best players in the world. But I’ve never felt this pride before — just busting out of my chest.”
You could see it on his face as he stood on the podium, fingering his Bronze Medal. Decked out in fluorescent Nike shoes, much to the chagrin of Sketchers, the company he represents, Kooch grinned ear-to-ear.
So once again, on behalf of American golfers everywhere, thanks Kooch. Thanks for saving face for the good old USA.
As for Bubba, Rickie and Patrick, play better at the Ryder Cup, fellas.
